Andrew Liszewski

When guns came along and became mankind's primary weapon, axes were relegated to chopping firewood and other mundane tasks—ending the medieval golden age of axe design. But thanks to a recent spike in zombie popularity, designer axes have enjoyed a renaissance.

You may never run into an actual zombie outside of a Halloween flash mob, but that's no excuse not to keep a few of these M48 Ranger Hawk Axes around the house, just in case. Sixty bucks gets you a lovely upswept stainless steel blade attached to a reinforced handle made from 30 percent fiberglass so it's light and easy to carry. Because the last thing you want is this weighing you down when you're cleaving braindead skulls.